Inhaled Reliever Therapy for Asthma Study

Which therapy was found to be associated with the fewest severe exacerbations compared to SABA alone?

What improvement in asthma control was associated with ICS-formoterol compared to SABA alone?

What is the minimum important difference (MID) for the Asthma Control Questionnaire in terms of score change?

Among the therapies compared, which one showed a risk ratio of 0.84 for severe exacerbations when compared with SABA alone?

What was the overall sample size for the randomized clinical trials included in the analysis?

Inhaled Reliever Therapy for Asthma

Study compared different inhaled reliever therapies for asthma
Focused on short-acting β agonists (SABA), inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) combined with formoterol, and ICS combined with SABA
Analyzed data from 27 randomized clinical trials with a total of 50,496 adult and pediatric patients (mean age 41.0 years, 40% male)

Findings

Reduced Exacerbations:
- ICS-formoterol significantly reduced severe exacerbations (risk ratio [RR] 0.65, 95% CI 0.60-0.72) compared to SABA alone
- ICS-SABA also showed a reduction in severe exacerbations (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.73-0.95) relative to SABA alone
Improved Asthma Control:
- ICS-formoterol and ICS-SABA both led to improved asthma control compared to SABA alone. (Significant improvement in MID scores and respective risk differences)
Indirect Comparison (ICS-Formoterol vs. ICS-SABA):
- ICS-formoterol exhibited a greater reduction in severe exacerbations (RR 0.78, 95% CI 0.66-0.92) than ICS-SABA
Safety:
- Neither ICS-formoterol nor ICS-SABA showed an increased risk of serious adverse events compared to SABA alone (high/moderate certainty)
Certainty of Evidence:
- Evidence for reduced exacerbations and improved control is high certainty for both ICS combinations.
- Evidence for ICS-formoterol vs. ICS-SABA and their safety effects is moderate to high certainty.

Explore the findings of a comprehensive study comparing various inhaled reliever therapies for asthma, focusing on short-acting β agonists and combinations with inhaled corticosteroids. Analyze data from 27 trials to understand the impact of these therapies on exacerbations and asthma control in adult and pediatric patients.